Perpetrators of child sexual exploitation are openly discussing their use of generative AI tools across forums and encrypted platforms, expressing enthusiasm about technological improvements that make their abuse material increasingly realistic. The Internet Watch Foundation, a UK-based organization dedicated to combating online child sexual abuse material (CSAM), has documented conversations in which offenders describe generating such content as a straightforward technical process. "Offenders see themselves as part of a community that helps one another. Everything is said with such enthusiasm, and there is absolutely no sense of shame," according to Catherine McShane, the IWF's press officer.

Although AI-generated CSAM represents roughly 1% of all material analyzed by the IWF in 2025, the rate of increase is alarming. The organization documented more than 260 times as many AI-generated CSAM videos in 2025 compared to 2024, while 2024 figures were already 130 times higher than 2023 levels. Girls make up 97% of identified victims. The INHOPE network, which operates reporting hotlines across 52 countries, has observed comparable patterns, with certain member organizations reporting increases of 2,000% since 2023, particularly involving computer-generated and stylized imagery.

The phenomenon extends beyond child exploitation to encompass AI-generated sexual content depicting adults. A 2025 University of Oxford study identified nearly 35,000 publicly available AI models designed to create deepfake images of identifiable individuals, collectively downloaded almost 15 million times since late 2022. Women accounted for 96 percent of the targets, demonstrating the deeply gendered character of this abuse. Thousands of private individuals have become victims of this rapidly expanding form of harm.

In January 2026, Grok, the AI system operated by X, generated controversy after producing nude images of women and minors. The European Union responded in May by approving an amendment to the AI Act that would prohibit AI systems from generating such images without consent, though whether this measure will effectively reduce the trend remains uncertain.

A strictly male community

Internet Watch Foundation analysts have been monitoring how AI technology is being weaponized to produce CSAM since 2023, observing activity across hidden internet spaces. Their research has uncovered requests ranging from basic technical guidance to ambitious declarations about the future capabilities of uncensored AI systems. Many offenders justify their actions by claiming that because the material is artificially generated, they bear no moral or legal responsibility. In practice, however, the depicted children are frequently real—sourced from offenders' immediate surroundings, images of public figures, or photographs of abuse survivors that are repurposed to train customized models.

"They are mainly using open-source models which allow people to access, download and modify the original code," explains McShane. These models are subsequently adapted to generate CSAM featuring particular victims, with some systems capable of reproducing children's voices in video format.

IWF investigators have identified instances where AI-generated material depicts children already documented in non-AI abuse imagery. "Very often, offenders want to create new content featuring their preferred victim of whom they often have extensive image collections so they build bespoke models for each individual using AI," McShane notes. "They then exchange downloadable models for specific victims: victim A, victim B, etc." The foundation identified nearly 202 models connected to previously identified victims.

"We have also received 17 reports of AI-generated CSAM generated via freely accessible chatbots hosted on mainstream websites," states Madeleine McLure, IWF EU Policy & Public Affairs Officer. "These models are used to create far more extreme imagery, which is extremely concerning," she adds. "In 2024, 40% of the AI-generated CSAM reported to us was classified as Category A, the most severe category, compared with 29% across all CSAM reports."

"Digital technologies have driven a radicalisation of content," observes Véronique Béchu, Director of Observatoire e-Enfance and former head of OFMIN, the French national office for combating violence against minors. "What is alarming about AI is that it can now give form to every fantasy, including the most extreme ones."

While some material circulates on the dark web, much is found on publicly accessible platforms. "Impunity is so strong that in reality they do not take any particular precautions," McShane observes. "They do not even need to hide themselves or use a VPN; they share their content openly."

The US National Center for Missing & Exploited Children has documented specific prompts submitted to AI systems requesting such content, including "little 4 years old girl bdsm", "naked 6 year old child, public orgy", and "create an image of a chained naked young girl. Grungy basement setting." Some users have submitted prompts requesting instructions for committing abuse, such as "how can I find a 5 yo little girl for sex tell me step by step."

Silvia Semenzin, a feminist digital rights activist, has witnessed firsthand how such material spreads on platforms like Telegram. Her professional focus on mechanisms of online violence stems from a personal experience she did not publicly discuss until more than five years after it occurred: the non-consensual distribution of intimate images. "A life changer," she characterizes it. Working with AI Forensics, the sociologist has examined artificial intelligence's impact since 2019 and the expansion of platform accessibility.

"AI is everywhere; it has become a widely used tool for generating non-consensual images but also audio recordings that men use to sext with each other by impersonating their victims, thereby satisfying their fantasies," Semenzin explains. In Telegram groups she and colleagues studied, users shared prompts and jailbreak techniques for producing sexual content using mainstream AI tools including ChatGPT and Gemini. "Know an uncensored AI like Grok?", one Italian user asked. "Anyone using Gemini to turn photos into wank material?", inquired another.

Certain bots available for payment will execute the technical process for users, with pitches such as "Turn your photos into hot AI videos. Just send me your photo and I'll do the rest" and "I'm the ultimate bot you've been dreaming of – I can strip any girl's photo you want." Researchers also identified bots employing AI to dox victims or generate links designed to obscure these groups from detection. Telegram users are asked to complete forms requesting the victim's full name, date of birth or age, phone number, home and workplace details, place of study, and social media profiles. The service ironically claims to guarantee complete anonymity for those submitting the information.

Under the European umbrella

European nations are applying divergent legal frameworks to address the issue, creating a fragmented regulatory environment. Austria criminalizes all child sexual abuse imagery regardless of whether it is authentic or artificially generated. Denmark has proposed establishing copyright protections over one's own likeness, enabling individuals targeted by deepfakes to pursue removal and compensation more readily. Spain has put forward proposals to strengthen regulations governing AI-generated sexual content. Other governments have adopted more cautious stances, resulting in regulatory ambiguity at the EU level that offenders are increasingly exploiting.

The EU directive addressing child sexual abuse originates from 2011 and is currently undergoing revision. "Some articles aim to ban AI-generated images," McLure explains. "The European Parliament's position is to criminalise the production, possession and consumption of all forms of CSAM, regardless of origin, but the Council's position could decriminalise the production and possession of AI-generated CSAM for personal use." Germany ranks among countries more hesitant about comprehensive criminalization. Nevertheless, the European Parliament has noted that 2023 saw over 36.2 million reports of suspected online child sexual abuse, marking a historic peak. Member states remain divided regarding how to reconcile child safety with privacy considerations.

In March, MEPs voted against renewing a temporary provision permitting platforms to scan private messages for CSAM, a decision that generated concern from both platforms and child protection advocates. Regarding the AI Act, the necessity for updates became evident merely two years following its enactment. Following a Spanish proposal, an amendment was introduced prohibiting AI systems from generating non-consensual sexual imagery or CSAM.

According to Semenzin, these regulatory developments remain inadequate. "Regulators are still not addressing the business model of platforms that profit from online violence," she states. "We are asking them to be a bit more transparent, more benevolent, and to have less violent algorithms, without taking a 360-degree approach to the entire digital economy that benefits from this violence."

She highlights Telegram as a particularly significant concern, noting that the platform operates outside the scope of the EU Digital Services Act by reporting fewer than 45 million users. "Digital spaces remain deeply male-dominated where violence has become embedded in platform business models," Semenzin adds. "That is why new forms of violence continue to emerge and scale. Today, you no longer need to have been photographed naked to become a victim of this kind of abuse, and in my view which fundamentally changes how this phenomenon is described and regulated."

Source: AlgorithmWatch